Once a Soldier
by Lord Jerry
Summary: An elite squad of human soldiers from an intergalactic civil war are returning from an attempted capture mission when they are forcefully removed from their universe via rogue warp gate. With no way home, can they find meaning in a universe entirely alien to them? Or will their past conflicts find them once more?
1. Dimensional Shift

_In the Golden Age of humanity, when mankind rapidly expanded its reach across the stars, war broke out like it never had before. Nearly five decades of war raged across the intergalactic territories between the United Republic of Terra and the Confederacy of the Free Frontier. The Confederacy became enraged when its people suffered from financial ruin and were denied support from the Union it had seceded from long ago. Rallied by their leaders, the people of the Confederacy made up an army large enough to rival the Union's. Though they lacked the same equipment and training, their tenacity and numbers made up for it for forty-eight hard years. Like all things, however, the war began to come to an end, the Union winning the war. In the waning months of the long, brutal war, the Union sent an elite squad to capture an important leader of the Confederacy named Saul Morris._

* * *

The cold wind rushed across the snow and ice-covered plains, nipping at a young Confederate infantryman through his armor. Scanning the surrounding area, he was met with the same thing he had been seeing for the past ten hours: nothing. However, that was to be expected when you were on a nameless, remote planet. He was stationed there as a guard for the base that hid Saul Morris, one of the leaders of the Confederacy. He had to be hidden, as the Union was almost surely going to win at this rate. It was not an easy victory for them, but it was almost certainly going to happen.

But he had faith. Faith that his people could beat the Union. Faith that they would finally be able to live comfortably and free.

He had to have faith. He couldn't afford not to. Especially with so many people of the Confederacy relying on their military.

The young man made another pass on his patrol, looking at the time displayed on his visor's HUD and seeing that his patrol shift was over. Heading back into the remote base, he headed inside the barracks where the other soldiers stayed. Fortunately, it was much warmer inside the building. He started to head up to the balcony on the second floor when another soldier called after him.

"Hey, Evans. Did you hear the news? A Union scientist defected and joined us. Apparently, he was working on some top-secret stuff. Cool, right?" the soldier shouted.

"Yeah. Anything we can get helps." he responded, heading to the balcony.

Walking back out into the frigid air, the man was allowed time to think. There was much to think about, but his thoughts were often about the cold that pierced his cheap armor. He felt jealousy and anger every time he felt the cold. His army couldn't afford the quality supplies the Union could. Their guns, their armor, their vehicles... Hell, even their food was poor quality.

The Confederacy didn't have the same luxuries as the Union. The Union had custom-fitting armor, materialization devices, quantum storage units, and temperature-controlled body suits. The _Confederacy_ , on the other hand, had mass-produced boxy armor that was hardly ever comfortable. It was also less likely to keep them alive.

The Union also had better guns. They used the latest laser rifles, which utilized energy bayonets that saw use more often than was necessary. The rifles were powerful, accurate, and sometimes came with an explosive launcher. The Confederate army had cheap, somewhat rectangular plasma casters instead. The plasma was powerful, but was inaccurate and overheated the rifles too quickly.

While Union fighters were like nimble black darts in the sky, the Confederacy had boxy fighters that were nowhere near as graceful. The Union fighters were sleek, with sharp wings that were held close to the body of the ship. The Confederate fighters had two thrusters on the sides instead of wings in an effort to give better mobility, but it only helped a small amount.

It should have been a completely one-sided war. But somehow, they managed to fight for so long with sheer tenacity and numbers.

While in his thoughts, the young man did not hear the footsteps behind him.

"Excuse me, son. Do you have a moment?"

He jumped in surprise a bit, not expecting to hear someone speaking to him. Turning around, the soldier saw that the man speaking to him was Saul Morris himself.

"Uh... Me, sir?"

The older man laughed, a smile adorning his bare, and likely freezing, face.

"Of course, son. Who else is here for me to be speaking to?" he replied, gesturing to the empty balcony.

The young man tried not to be embarrassed, instead choosing to answer the first question he was asked.

"Right. Well, yeah, I have a moment. Just got done with my patrol shift."

Saul frowned at the statement.

"Just got done? Well, then I suppose I can ask someone else. I would hate to ask you to work for so long."

"No, it's fine. Whatever you need, just say the word." the soldier said, saluting his superior.

Saul smiled, putting his hand on the soldier's shoulder.

"If you insist. Oh, and drop the salute. You soldiers are just as important as I am. If anything, I should salute you!" Saul said with a chuckle, saluting the young soldier.

"So, here is your task: I need you to guard the door to the room where I will be speaking with the Union defector. Do not let anyone listen in on what we are saying. As much as I trust everyone here, I know how soldiers like to talk. Letting information leak is something that could destroy us all. I have faith you will not speak to anyone about what you hear."

"But... why me specifically?"

Saul led the soldier down through the barracks, where Saul was saluted by all of the soldiers. The man ignored these soldiers, however, as he spoke.

"Damien Evans, correct? I have multiple reports about your loyalty. You have survived multiple engagements with the enemy, and have proven loyalty to us. _That_ is why. You are the type of soldier that inspires us all."

The two reached a small building that acted as Saul's shelter at the edge of the frozen outpost. Saul entered, leaving Damien to guard the building. Letting curiosity get the better of him, Damien listened to the meeting. He could hear the defector speaking through the door about some kind of project he had been working on with the Union before he had to flee because of his negligent attitude toward a group of volunteer Rangers that caused them to disappear. The project was some kind of weapon.

And it was a genius one.

From what he could gather, it was a type of mine that was made from a warp device that would activate when a non-Confederate ship would pass by. However, it wasn't made with a regular warp drive. It was made with an _interdimensional_ warp drive.

The whole point of the weapon was to catch Union ships by surprise, as it was not an explosive weapon and would not be detected as a threat. Instead, it would be detected as floating ship debris. Once it was activated, it would open a warp gate that would suck any ship nearby into a different dimension.

At the moment, there was only one prototype that had already been made by the scientist.

Its location: Sector Loki B 4-1.

Finally, they had a trick up their sleeve. Somethings that could allow them to hold out maybe just long enough...

The door opened, and out walked Saul and the scientist. The scientist was an older man like Saul, and was a bit short compared to most people of their time, standing at about six foot two. Damien found it slightly amusing that he would have been considered a tall person thousands of years ago.

Saul dismissed Damien, letting him go back to his previous place on the balcony. When Damien reached his destination, he looked down to see the patrol passing by.

Except... the patrol was nowhere to be seen.

Damien found this odd. The patrols were never off with their timing, so this was an odd occurrence. The man that usually took Damien's place was especially precise, which was even more odd. Looking off into the distance, he noticed that the woman that usually patrolled the other sector was missing as well.

Worry crept into him, its cold tendrils almost overwhelming as his thoughts raced with possibilities. This could only be something very, _v_ _ery_ bad.

He clutched his rifle tight, and with a bit of resolve, made his way down to check on the patrols. As he made his way through the barracks, he announced his observations.

"The patrols are missing. We might have a risk of intruders."

Upon hearing this, many of the soldiers that heard grabbed their weapons and helmets, rushing out to deal with whatever intruders there may be.

Damien rushed out to where the patrols were supposed to be, a group of soldiers behind him. He scanned the area, searching for whatever may have caused the disappearance of his fellow Confederates. Across the icy plains, he spotted nothing but the occasional ice shards and crevasses scattered about. As he looked hard for the threat, his boot caught on something, making him faceplant into the grainy, crunchy snow.

Picking himself up, he looked at the ground where he tripped, seeing something poking out slightly.

He felt his heart sink as he approached the object slowly. Uncovering the object, he realized it was a boot. He dug through more snow with his hands, confirming his suspicions. He could see the familiar blue and silver armor that adorned all Confederate troopers.

It was the body of the patrolman. Through the man's visor was a burned hole that went through the other side.

Damien turned on his radio, warning the base.

"Alert! This is Private Evans. The patrols have been found killed. We have intruders!"

As he finished the warning, he looked over to the other soldiers that followed him, one of them rushing over to him. However, an almost unnoticeable red beam flashed, and the soldier had a smoking hole in his skull as he flew into the ground.

Damien didn't bother to find out where the shot came from as multiple other barks from laser rifles rang out. He could hear fellow Confederates grunt or scream out in pain before being silenced as he ran. He rounded a corner of a nearby building, the wall having a molten crater put into it where he was not even half a second before.

Immediately, chaos erupted within the base. Alarms blared loudly as troops rushed to take positions, many being cut down from unknown locations. In the distance, Damien spotted Saul Morris and the defector. Knowing they were likely targets, he ran as quickly as possible toward them.

When he was only a few meters away, however, the defector had a laser blow open his skull, his smoking grey matter spraying across the snow. His body crumpled onto the ground, but Saul opted to leave his body as he started barking out orders to his soldiers. Then, he noticed Damien.

"We need to reach my ship, son. C'mon!"

He didn't need to be told twice. Damien followed him closely, Saul taking pot-shots with his pistol in the general direction of the attackers.

A trio of Confederate tanks rolled past them, their dual cannons taking aim when multiple projectiles struck the tanks, blowing the tanks to pieces in a blazing inferno. An unfortunate duo of soldiers were caught in the blast, getting completely shredded. Damien could feel the searing heat, the unpleasant feeling contrasting sickeningly with the freezing environment they were in.

The transports were in sight, many troops retreating toward them only to be ripped to shreds by precise blasts from the hostiles. Those that survived were taken out by sniper fire.

Getting on his radio, Saul ordered his troops to retreat.

"Fall back to the transports! Squads Bravo, Golf, and Zulu hold them off for now. We'll aid your escape from the air." Saul said, a small amount of fear making its way into his voice.

The rest of the base did its best to evacuate, though a pitiful amount made it through. Some carried crates of equipment and supplies, while others looked like they were lucky to have made it with most of their limbs. The display made Damien want to puke as he entered Saul's personal transport with a few other troops. Back in the base, he could see the squads that had been ordered to stay behind get massacred with precision.

"Dammit! They hardly slowed them down."

Damien watched as Saul pulled out a detonator from his coat, flipping off the safety. Turning on his radio, he gave the order to take off.

"All transports, take off. Before they shoot us all down!"

Detonator in hand, Saul eyed the device as his own transport began to take off. Damien slammed the button to close the boarding ramp as he tried to give suppressing fire. Before the ramp could close, however, a laser blast made it through the gap and struck Saul at the shoulder, blowing his arm off completely. His arm and detonator slid out of a space in the ramp before the ramp shut completely.

Saul had a look of shock plastered to his features, sliding to the ground while leaning against a wall, his shoulder spurting out blood. A soldier attempted to stop the bleeding as Saul looked at Damien, a solemn look in his eyes.

"I knew they... would come. I rigged the place to... blow. Finish... the job, son. Blow these _bastards_ back to Hell."

Damien processed what he had said, realizing that he would likely die doing this. However, he nodded, ready to accept his fate.

"It's been an honor, sir."

He slammed his fist on the 'Open' button, leaping out of the ship. The distance to the ground was not too far, but it still hurt when he hit the ground. About twenty meters away, he could see the detonator, Saul's arm laying nearby, the snow around it stained crimson.

Damien ran toward the detonator, one of the transports above him exploding into pieces. The shockwave nearly knocked him over, but he persisted. Once he reached the detonator, he immediately picked it up and wiped off the red fluid that glistened on the device.

He began to depress the button on the detonator when he heard a deep, garbled voice barking out distorted commands. It sent chills down his spine. Damien knew it was a sound very few lived to speak about. Looking up, he could see them. The ones who decimated so many of his allies. It made him shudder to see how few it took. Only three of them stood at the edge of the outpost, firing at escaping ships.

Their armor was the darkest black he had ever seen. A black that sucked the light away from the air around it. Then, he met the piercing red T-shaped visor of one of the attackers. After barking another distorted command, the trio pointed their weapons his direction. Without a second of hesitation, Damien clicked the button on the detonator.

Next thing he knew, he was sailing through the air. He landed in the snow hard, the wind knocked from his lungs. Fortunately, he could see the three attackers laying in the snow as well. However, his feeling of relief was quickly decimated when they all stood up and began making their way over to him.

Using his gun for leverage to stand up, Damien attempted to escape into one of the icy crevasses. He could hear his pursuers right behind him as he leapt into the deep hole in the ice.

However, he did not fall. Instead, a vice-like grip was clenched around his ankle. He was tossed back onto the ground and tried to get back up, only to have a boot shove him into the snow. Looking up, he saw the attacker up close. On the chest of the attacker was a symbol, showing three lines flowing upward over a shield-shaped red background, seven stars underneath the red shield.

It was the symbol of the United Republic of Terra.

These were Union soldiers. Judging by their visor shape, they must have been some kind of special unit. It made sense for them to be elite if they were attempting to capture Saul.

One of the Elites grabbed Damien by the throat, picking him up and out from under the other Elite.

"Where. Is. Saul?" they demanded, their voice obscured by a voice modifier.

Damien used of his free arms to lift his helmet just enough to spit on the Union soldier.

"Gone. That's where, you bastard."

The Elite wiped his visor free of the spit and squeezed Damien's throat harder.

"You think because you tell us nothing... that you are strong? You are coming with us. Eventually, you will _break_."

They took him to a distant location where a ship uncloaked. An entryway opened up, allowing them to enter the vessel. The temperature was much better than the outside temperature, but that was not important at the moment. The trio took him through the ship and into what seemed to be a small cell block for whatever prisoners they may have. When they reached the cell at the end, they ordered him to remove his armor.

He didn't bother arguing, as they had already taken his weapons. He removed all of his armor, leaving him in a baggy undersuit. Taking his armor away, they tossed him into the cell and locked him in.

Damien vowed to tell them nothing. But he couldn't help but feel... afraid.

* * *

Lieutenant Ajax Laskaris paced around his quarters, frustration coursing through him. That bastard Saul Morris escaped _and_ destroyed the outpost, vaporizing everything they could use to find him again. Well, almost everything. They at least had that Confederate soldier held as their prisoner. But they still didn't have _Saul_!

Ajax slammed a fist into his metal desk in rage, leaving a dent in it. Calming himself, he went into his bathroom and dematerialized his helmet, splashing water onto his face. Looking up into the mirror in front of him, he let out a sigh. Years ago, he looked like a completely different man. He looked like a youthful, optimistic man. But he had spent nine long years in constant brutal combat.

Still, he was definitely considered a handsome man, and was an average height for his generation, standing at six foot six. He had a strong yet narrow jawline, golden blonde hair, and chocolate brown eyes all accompanied by a Texan accent and deep voice.

With one final sigh, he stepped out of his quarters and spotted the squad's medical expert Janine Cadence. She was a kind woman with short red hair and brilliant green eyes who was assigned to the squad about four years ago. She rarely joined in on the combat, but she could easily hold her own.

"Hey, Ajax! How are you holding up?" she asked.

"I'm fine. Nobody got hurt in the explosions. I'm just... frustrated."

She nodded her head in understanding, continuing her way down the corridor.

"I understand. But you should relax. He got lucky, that's all. He'll be caught. I mean, it's not like the Confederacy has much longer until they're defeated entirely."

Ajax followed her down the corridor and into the living area, where Janine got herself some instant food from their ship's pseudo-kitchen.

"Maybe. But it just feels like they have something going on that we don't know about... I think that we might-"

"Son of a BITCH! I hate these new laser weapons."

Entering the common area was Captain Krieg Keaton as he worked on his heavy laser cannon. He was a veteran of the war years before Ajax ever joined the army, and was the heavy weapons expert of the squad. He was the oldest of the squad at forty-one, but sometimes acted the least mature. He was a large man, standing at seven foot three, and was over four hundred pounds of pure muscle. When paired with the tendencies of a silverback gorilla, this became a dangerous combo.

"They're the best weapons you could ask for, though." Ajax responded.

Ajax took a seat on a couch in the common area, where he saw the squad's sniper sitting across from him. The sniper's name was Ivan Ulvarrson, and he was the newest edition of the team, having joined them two years prior. He didn't talk much... Or at all. It made him quite mysterious, as nobody knew much about him.

Ajax looked at the datapad attached to his wrist, seeing that they were somewhere in the Loki sector of the Andromeda galaxy. It was a place that was relatively barren, as there were no settlements nearby, which made it perfect for moving through without attracting any attention.

At the moment, they were attempting to find the transports that had escaped from the unnamed frozen planet. They decided to try and pursue their target instead of warping home. With any luck, they would find them before winding up too deep in Confederate territory.

With a frown, Ajax turned off his datapad and laid back. Their prisoner had refused to say anything, so they would have to resort to more extreme measures soon. If he could just tell them something, they could capture Saul and finally go home.

Suddenly, there was a loud rumble that resounded throughout the ship. The ship shook hard, and Ajax's radio came to life.

"Lieutenant, a warp gate just opened out of nowhere! You should come see this!"

Without any hesitation, Ajax rushed to the bridge of the ship and opened the door to see a terrifying sight. Sitting in the pilot seat was Julian Scott, the pilot of the squad's ship: _Crimson Tide._ Even though his face was concealed by his pilot's helmet, marked by the signature red chevron visor, Ajax could tell the man was worried. Then, the ship's AI spoke up.

"Lieutenant, scans show that the pull of the gate is too powerful to escape from. Recommended course of action: Brace for warp."

"Understood, Skye. Julian, tell everyone to brace for warp."

The pilot nodded, turning on the intercom and issuing the warning.

Ajax got into a nearby seat and buckled himself in as the ship was forced into the rogue warp gate. He held his breath in anticipation as everything began to go white.

* * *

It was a peaceful day in the Lylat system. Quiet, just the way Fox McCloud liked it. Taking one more look at the photo his childhood friend and fiancee Fara Phoenix sent him, he stood up from his bed in his room and headed into the ship's bridge. As he made his way to the bridge, he passed by the common area, where the team's females all sat.

Krystal waved at him, and he waved back with a smile. Krystal was a very good-hearted vixen, who he had rescued from Sauria years ago. She had lost her planet and her family to Andross, and Fox felt extremely sorry for her. He knew what it was like to lose family. After being rescued, she proved that she was an expert with close-quarters combat, and was also a telepath. He almost didn't believe it at first, but it had proven many times to be quite useful.

Next to Krystal sat Miyu Lynx, and on the other side was Fay Spaniel. The two women were originally part of the Cornerian army, but eventually joined Star Fox together. Even though the two were best friends, they were _very_ different.

Miyu Lynx was a very outgoing woman, and was also quite tomboyish. Even though she liked to flirt, she was also quite respectful. Miyu was also an excellent shot, as well as a great interceptor pilot.

Fay Spaniel was much more shy than Miyu, but had more optimism than any other person Fox had met. Though she came from rich aristocrats, she was incredibly humble. On top of being an interceptor pilot like Miyu, Fay was excellent with technology and computers. With Slippy as well, they kept the Great Fox and everything in it running very smoothly.

Fox entered the bridge of the Great Fox, seeing Peppy, Slippy, Falco, and R.O.B. all inside. He took a seat, turning to Peppy while Falco and Slippy argued like children.

"Anything come up, Pep?"

The old hare shook his head.

"Nothing yet, Fox. And don't call me that."

Fox chuckled and began to lean back in his seat when the holographic projector turned on, startling him and causing him to fall over. When he got up from his embarrassing fall, he looked up to see General Pepper was looking right back down at him.

"Uh... What is it, General?" Fox asked, looking back at the arguing Falco and Slippy to give them a look that said 'shut up'.

"Fox, I have received word that a strange and powerful energy reading was discovered not too far outside of Corneria. I ask that you investigate. The coordinates have been sent to your ship."

Fox looked at the coordinates, letting R.O.B. set the ship's course for the destination.

"Of course, General. We'll let you know what we find as soon as possible."

"Thank you, McCloud. Be careful." General Pepper said before signing off.

Fox sat back down in his chair, looking over at Peppy again. The hare let out a sigh, taking a seat himself.

"I'm getting too old for all of these missions."

Fox chuckled, patting Peppy on the back.

"This will be the last one for a while, then we'll go home. I promise."

With that, the Star Fox mercenary team set off to investigate the unusual energy reading. For some reason, Peppy couldn't shake the feeling that this would be something major.

Very major.

* * *

"So tell me again what we're doing?" Miyu asked Fox as she put her gear on.

Fox sighed, putting his boot on as he explained.

"Alright. Listen up, because I won't explain it again. General Pepper wants us to investigate an unusual energy reading that had been detected near Corneria. Our goal is to see if it's a threat, and if it is, eliminate it."

"Gotcha." Miyu said, sliding a blaster into its holster.

Fox looked out a window and saw nothing until he did a double-take. He noticed a large, dark shape floating aimlessly through space, not the slightest amount of activity taking place. It was easily larger than the Great Fox, being almost twice the size. It was the darkest black Fox had ever seen, except for a red symbol on the side with seven gold stars at the bottom. The ship itself was sleek, with four narrow wings that extended past the back of the ship. The front had two points on the end, a pair of massive cannons between the points. Along the sides of the ship were various other cannons, though much smaller in size.

It struck him as odd that an inactive ship put out such a powerful energy output. Perhaps the ship was in some kind of danger...

Fox entered the ship's bridge and got on the communicator, attempting to hail the ship.

"This is Fox McCloud of Star Fox. State your ship name and purpose. If you are in distress, please let me know immediately."

Silence.

"I repeat, State your ship name and purpose. If in distress, tell me immediately."

Once again, silence.

Fox exited the bridge, grabbing the attention of his team minus Peppy and Slippy.

"Star Fox, prepare to board the ship."

* * *

Ajax awoke with a start, seeing that only the emergency lights were on in the ship. Undoing his harness, he stood up from the seat he was in and materialized his helmet, using it to enhance his vision in the poorly lit ship. The first thing he did was check on the rest of his squad, heading to the warp harnesses to see his squad there.

Krieg was awake, and was in the process of getting out of the harness when Ivan woke up and did the same. As they got free of the safety harnesses, there was a loud bang that made everyone freeze.

"Lieutenant, you remember that sound, right?" Krieg asked.

"I sure do. An entry port has been pried open. We're being boarded."

The trio materialized their weapons, rushing through the ship toward the intruders. If they were lucky, they could get the drop on them and not have to risk being shot at. Of course, that wasn't always going to happen, but it was best to at least try.

As they spread out, they dimmed the lights coming from their visors to make them as invisible as possible as they waited for the foolish intruders to enter.

* * *

The Star Fox team made their way into the dimly lit ship quickly, watching all corners for any potential hostiles. Fox took the lead, Krystal following close behind. The telepath used her abilities to try and find any life signatures. The problem was, she couldn't detect a single one.

"Fox, I have yet to detect any life. Either this ship is abandoned, or... the occupants are not alive.

Fox grimaced at the thought, but pushed forward anyway.

"I have hope that they made it out okay. If not, then we can at least get their bodies back to their homes."

As the group progressed deeper into the ship, Falco let out a barely suppressed shiver of anxiety.

"This ship is creepy." he said quietly.

" _You're_ creepy." Miyu joked.

Falco fake laughed mockingly at Miyu's joke and went to retort when they heard a distorted voice from behind.

"Drop your weapons. Reach for the sky."

The room went silent, the Star Fox team all jumping in surprise as they were caught off guard. Not wanting to risk getting shot in the back, the team did as told and dropped their weapons before they put their hands in the air. Slowly, Fox turned around to see who gave the order when another person walked out in front of the group. Looking at the second person, Fox immediately felt his heart begin to race.

Standing in front of him was a beast of a person, standing over a foot taller than even Falco, who was exceptionally tall for a Cornerian. They were bulky, their muscles visible even with the armor on. The giant was wearing armor as black as the ship they were in, except for a T-shaped visor that pierced the dark with red. In the hands of the giant was what Fox assumed to be a laser cannon. The hulking weapon was almost bigger than Fox was, so he didn't want to imagine what it could do to him.

"Tell us who you are, and what you're doing here." the voice from behind ordered.

Fox swallowed hard, but kept his composure.

"We are the mercenary team Star Fox. We were sent to investigate an unusual energy reading detected outside Corneria. We found your ship, and figured that you were in distress because the ship was inactive."

He heard a chuckle, followed by more distorted speaking.

"Mercenaries, eh? Well, tell me _what_ y'all are now. You don't look like any Spliced I've ever seen."

Fox was incredibly confused.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean what is your species."

This confused Fox even more.

"Well... I'm a Fox. Uh... we're all Lylatians, if that's what you're asking about."

The voice huffed, and Fox could hear heavy footsteps coming from behind him. Looking to his side, he could see two more giants, who were still very large despite being smaller than the first one he saw. One held a long and sleek sniper rifle, while the other held an odd looking rifle. It had two barrels, a larger barrel under the other. Under both barrels was a slit, behind which was a hand guard. It was compact, with a bulky magazine sticking out of the bottom labeled "HE", presumably meaning "High Explosive".

"That's strange. Are you a new generation of hybrid?"

"What? Hybrid of what?"

The giant shook his head, lowering his large rifle.

"Never mind. You obviously aren't hybrids. But that is what I find odd. Tell me... where are we?"

"You're in the Lylat system. The planet nearby is Corneria."

The giant grunted in frustration, leaning down to Fox's eye level.

"I don't think you understand. As far as I know, this is some backwater frontier system. I need to know what Galactic sector we're in. In fact, tell me what galaxy we're in as well."

Fox was completely baffled at this point, as was the rest of the team.

"Are you implying you're from a different galaxy?"

The giant clenched their fist in frustration, growling.

"I don't _know_ yet. How hard is it to answer a fucking question?"

"Well how about you answer a question for _me_? What are _you guys_?"

"...What? We're obviously human."

Falco scoffed, cocking an eyebrow.

"We don't even know what a... 'human' even is. How should it have been obvious?"

The giant froze for nearly half a minute before turning around slowly.

"You're speaking English. A human language. How the hell do you not know what a human is?"

"We're speaking Lylatian Common. So are you."

The giant went silent, thinking to themself for a while. Suddenly, they punched their fist into one of the metal walls, denting it deeply.

"None of this is making any sense!"

"Dammit, Laskaris. You know how long it'll take to fix that wall?" the biggest giant asked.

The one called "Laskaris" shook their head, obviously frustrated immensely.

"Yeah, yeah. But I can't figure this out. Where did that warp gate send us?"

"I couldn't tell you. But one thing's for sure: We can't just stand here forever trying to figure this out."

"You're right. Lower your weapons. I don't think these guys are a threat."

The two other "humans" lowered their weapons, allowing Star Fox to relax and pick their own weapons back up. As they went to pick up their weapons, however, the human with the sniper rifle raised their weapon threateningly.

"Ivan, it's fine. Lower your weapon."

The soldier did as told and lowered his weapon, if a bit begrudgingly. The Star Fox team was led to what seemed like a common area, where "Laskaris" stopped and motioned to the seats, which the Star Fox team took, though Fay looked a bit scared to move at all. Eventually, she took a seat.

"Krieg, watch over them while Ivan and I try to get the ship running."

"Got it, Ajax. Thanks for leaving me with the awkward job."

Ajax/Laskaris just chuckled as he and the other human headed off. Before they could get anywhere, however, a human with a red downward chevron visor came running in as the lights all came on.

"Fixed it. Just needed to reboot the... what am I looking at?"

The other humans just shrugged.

"...Okay then."

Then, an electronic female voice sounded out.

"Warning: Unknown lifeforms on board. Recommended course of action:-"

"We already know, Skye. You're late to the party."

"Recommended course of action: Shut up."

Ajax let out a sigh.

"Feelin' the love."

Fay seemed interested in the voice, as it came from an intercom and spoke similarly to a machine.

"Who was that?" Fay asked.

"I am Skye, an artificial intelligence for Reaper Squad's ship _The Crimson Tide._ "

Fay was intrigued. They had artificial intelligence in the Lylat, but she wanted to know how advanced this particular AI was. As she thought about it, Falco spoke up with a question that was on everyone's mind.

"So... are you guys aliens? You claimed to be a species called... 'humans', was it? We haven't really seen anything like you before, and you don't know what galaxy you're in."

The human with the chevron visor chuckled slightly to himself before answering.

"Yes, we are. We have come to rule over you as tyrannical overlords and-"

"Shut the fuck up, Julian." Krieg ordered.

"You're lame, man."

Suddenly, a different voice spoke up from down the corridor.

"Who's lame? What did I miss?"

Another human stood in the common area, staring at the Star Fox team from behind a helmet. Their shape was definitely feminine, and they had no armor on.

"Apparently a lot..." she said.

"Yes, you did."

Slowly, the female made her way over to the animal people, not taking her eyes off of them. They looked like the animal hybrid Spliced, but they were smaller, and had more animal features.

"So... Anyone gonna explain who the hell these guys are?"

Ajax gave her a quick rundown of what they had figured out so far, letting her process the information for a moment. Julian listened as well, as he was curious as to what was going on. The two nodded their heads, though they were both a bit bothered by the whole situation.

"Well that isn't worrying at all." the female said sarcastically.

"I know it's looking bad, Janine, but we have to have faith that things will be alright." Ajax said, attempting to be reassuring.

Janine just sighed, shrugging.

"I guess."

Fox could tell that these aliens were stressed about the whole situation, so he decided to try and help.

"I understand that it must be stressful to be far from home and to not know where you are. If you want, you can stay with us on Corneria until you can figure out how to get home."

The human named Ajax looked over at Fox, seemingly contemplating the offer.

"I would hate to be a burden to all of you."

"You wouldn't be a burden. I promise."

Ajax thought for a moment more, eventually coming to a decision.

"Alright then. But I insist that we pay you back in some way."

Fox let out a sigh, shrugging.

"Sure. If you must. But you really don't need to. Since you'll be staying with us, you can just follow our ship to Corneria."

With that, Star Fox began to head back to their ship.

"See you guys on Corneria." Falco shouted to the humans.

Krystal followed Falco close behind, but focused on the humans with her telepathy. For some odd reason, she couldn't get a read on them. Once they got to Corneria, she would investigate further. Until then, she would just have to wait.

With Star Fox back on their ship, Ajax gave Julian the order to follow them back to their planet. Hopefully, they would get answers as to where they ended up and how they would get home.

 _If_ they could get back home.

* * *

 _Howdy, everybody. Thanks for reading the first chapter of this story. For some of you, thanks for re-reading. I feel like this flows a bit better than before, and the consistency should be better now that I know how I want this to actually go. Sorry for the wait, but I honestly think the story will be much improved. Of course, that's all subjective._

 _As always, be sure to let me know what you think. If you have any questions or concerns, shoot me a message and I'll do my best to answer you._

 _See you soon!_

 _-Lord Jerry._


	2. Getting Situated

The flight to the alien planet did not take long, said planet coming into view within less than half an hour. It was very Earth-like in appearance, being covered in mostly oceans with continents spread across the surface. Ajax wondered just how similar it would be to his home-planet, especially since the "Lylatians" spoke English. It made him want to know just how many other similarities they shared.

"Taking the ship down to the surface. Breaching atmosphere now." Julian said calmly, following the alien ship down.

Flames licked at the sides of the ship as they entered the atmosphere quickly, their shields keeping them from being cooked. Once they passed through the cloud layer, Julian slowed their descent, allowing Ajax to take in the sight of a city in the distance. It was smaller than most major human cities, but it was still impressive. The rolling hills and plenitude of plant life gave the city plenty of beauty.

They followed the alien ship to a location where a building with a large forest behind it sat, landing zones marked off about a few dozen meters away. When the other ship landed, they did the same.

"Landing gear deployed. Landing now." Julian stated as they reached the surface.

After they landed, the ship AI spoke over the speakers.

"Landing sequence successful. Excellent job, Julian."

The pilot stood up and stretched, chuckling.

"Thanks, Skye. You wanna come with us? You'd get to learn more about the aliens."

"Of course. Transferring to android frame."

A panel opened up on a wall of the bridge, an android body stepping out. It looked almost human, except for the glowing red vertical lines going down the face across the eyes, which also glowed a light red. The android was feminine in shape, with mid-length synthetic black hair on its head, all accompanied by pale artificial skin.

"Glad you decided to join us for once." Ajax said jokingly.

The AI smiled, shrugging.

"I couldn't pass up an opportunity like this. What are the chances we encounter a new alien race again?"

"Good point. Which reminds me... do you think they'll freak out when they see our faces?" Julian asked.

Ajax shook his head.

"They probably won't. I mean, they were pretty calm at the prospect of us being aliens."

"But what if they think we're ugly?"

"They'll think you and Krieg are ugly. The rest of us are fine." Ajax joked.

Julian mockingly laughed at Ajax's insult, but did not speak further on the subject. The trio headed out of the bridge, meeting up with the rest of the team in the common area. Once they were all together, they began to make their way out of the ship. They headed down to the lower lever where the hangar and holding cells were, opening the ramp that led them out. Remembering that they had a prisoner, Ajax turned to Skye.

"Skye, could you check on the Confederate for me? Make sure he isn't starved or anything like that."

The AI huffed, but saluted.

"Sure thing. Just be sure to let me ask the aliens questions later."

Ajax nodded, continuing to head out of the ship. The humans exited the ship and went toward the building that they would likely be staying in for a while. Before they reached the door, the male fox opened the door and smiled at them.

"Come on in, you guys. We were hoping to talk to you all for a while, and to properly introduce ourselves."

Ajax nodded, making his way inside the building to see a cozy looking living room, instantly putting him more at ease. In the living area were the other aliens that were aboard the _Crimson Tide_ , as well as a short frog person and an old rabbit. The rest of the humans made their way in, scanning over the building. It had two floors, which was nice. It was also very spacious, which Ajax suspected was because of the fact that a whole team was expected to live there comfortably.

"This is a nice place. I haven't been in a place this welcoming in... _years_." Ajax said, to which Fox chuckled.

"Well, I'm glad you like it. If you'd like to get settled first, I'd be glad to show you where you will be staying."

Thinking for a moment, Ajax decided to wait before getting settled.

"We can wait until later to do that. We have quite a few things we would like to gather or get done, and relaxing first would do us some good."

Fox nodded, taking a seat on one of the couches in the living area, motioning for the humans to take seats as well. They did just that, finding their places next to the aliens. Ajax took a seat next to the fox, and Ivan took a seat next to him. Janine, Julian, and Krieg all found their seats next to the blue vixen and bird.

"So, I suppose we will introduce ourselves properly first. I'm Fox McCloud, leader of the Star Fox mercenary team. It used to be my father's team, but... he was killed years ago." Fox said, a slightly sad look coming across his features before he perked back up and continued.

"Peppy over there, the older hare, was one of my father's teammates, and now acts as an advisor during combat. The toad is Slippy Toad, our ship's mechanic. He keeps all of our ships running, and is always trying to invent something new." he said, the two waving to the humans.

He then pointed a clawed finger over to the blue bird and vixen.

"Krystal is my second-in-command, and is and expert in close-quarters combat. Oh, and as difficult as it may be to believe, she's a telepath."

This immediately put the humans on edge. That was somewhat hard to believe, but telepathy was an ability that could be gained via neural implants back home, so it was definitely feasible.

"Wait, what? I swear, if you tell anyone what I'm thinking..." Julian started.

The blue fox laughed, shaking her head.

"Yes, I'm a telepath, but I can't get a read on any of you, oddly enough. That's why I didn't sense you on your ship."

The humans were relieved, and let Fox continue.

"The blue bird is Falco Lombardi. He's an ace pilot and is fond of heavy weapons. He also has a bad attitude."

Falco huffed and crossed his arms, proving Fox correct. Fox then pointed to the female dog and lynx.

"Those two are the most recent additions to the team, being two interceptor pilots from the Cornerian Defense Force. Fay Spaniel is our tech expert," the white canine waved when Fox paused, "and Miyu Lynx is one of the best shots you could ask for."

The Lynx winked at the humans, who nodded toward her.

"We also have our ship's robot R.O.B. who helps with navigation. Together, we make the system's best mercenary team!"

Ajax stayed seated, but sat up straighter ready to introduce his team.

"I suppose it's our turn now. My name is Ajax Laskaris. I am the team's Aerial Assault Trooper. I utilize a more advanced jump pack and mobility equipment, as well as a variety of explosives. Krieg Keaton is the big guy. He's our Heavy Shock Trooper. Big guns and rocket launchers are his thing. Ivan Ulvarrson here is the newest addition to our squad, acting as our sniper. He doesn't talk much, if at all, but he's a certified badass."

He pointed at Julian, continuing.

"Julian Scott is our pilot and does a majority of the mechanical work. There isn't a soul in the universe who could out-fly him."

Falco smirked, which Ajax noticed, but ignored. He turned to Janine, finally introducing her.

"Finally, we have Janine Cadence. She is the medical expert, and has kept us going many times. She's a life-saver for sure, but can be a life-taker as well."

Turning back to "Star Fox", Ajax motioned over to his team.

"Along with our AI, Skye, we have been running operations for years against the enemies of the United Republic of Terra. Together, we make up the Elite Special Operations unit Reaper Squad."

Fox nodded, doing his best to remember it all.

"Well it's great to meet each of you. Now that that's done, I suppose getting some questions answered is in order. So, I suppose I'll start. What is it like where you are from?"

Ajax sighed, but answered the question.

"Well, it is full of varying cultures. There are many different kinds of people from many different worlds, all spread out across many galaxies. Unfortunately, the territories controlled by our government are being fought over. Nearly five decades ago, a different human government... had disagreements with ours, and rallied an army against us and our people. So, that has been the focus of most of our people."

Fox couldn't believe how far spread humans were, and how long the war went on. The war with Venom was one of the biggest wars in the Lylat's history, but it was nowhere as long as this human war.

"Of course, war is not all there is to our people. We have countless beautiful songs, art pieces, and much more. With the various cultures, there is more to see, taste, hear, and discover than anyone can ever experience in one lifetime."

Star Fox was intrigued by the details given to them. Ajax went on about human culture, where they came from, how they spread across the stars, and more. After quite a long while, Ajax finally finished explaining humans to Star Fox.

"Wow. That's... a lot to take in." Fox said.

"Yes, it is. But I felt like giving that information would give answers to whatever questions y'all may have. Now, I suppose that it's your turn to inform us about your people."

Fox did just that, describing to the humans what Corneria was like, and what the rest of the planets in the system were like as well. He also went into detail about the war with Venom, and how Andross had been defeated, but remnants of Venomian forces remained.

"Wait, stop right there. You fought a _giant ape head in space?_ " Julian asked, unbelieving.

"I know it sounds ridiculous, but that's exactly what happened." Fox stated.

The humans didn't exactly believe it, but when the other members of Star Fox vouched for Fox, while they still didn't quite believe it, they couldn't help but feel like they were in a much stranger place than they previously thought.

"Well, those 'Venomians' sound like a bad bunch. Are they really as bad as you say?" Krieg asked.

"As bad and more. They want nothing more than to destroy Corneria and control the Lylat under Andross's tyrannical rule."

The humans nodded, taking in the information about potential threats. With the introductions as well as the history lesson over, the Ajax decided that it would be best to get situated in what would likely be their home for a while.

"I suppose we should gather our things and find out what to do from there." Ajax said, standing up.

As the other humans began to get up as well, Miyu quickly stood up.

"Wait! Could you... show us what you look like?"

The humans pondered the question for a moment. The atmosphere was breathable for them, and showing their face shouldn't be a problem... but for some reason they didn't want to. They all looked at each other, waiting for someone else to show their face first. Then, after a while, the humans were slightly caught off guard when the silent Ivan's helmet was enveloped in a red energy before disappearing.

Star Fox looked on at the human's face, taking in his features. He slightly resembled the Apes of Venom, but had a less flat nose and less hair on his face. He had short black hair paired with emerald green eyes as well as pale skin that had multiple scars across it, one large scar across his cheek stopping at his right eye. It wasn't quite what the Lylatians were expecting, but then again, they didn't really know what to expect. Even still, the human's face intrigued them.

With a sigh, Krieg decided to remove his helmet as well.

"I can't let Ivan be the only one."

The red energy enveloped Krieg's helmet before his helmet disappeared entirely, revealing his face to the Lylatians. They turned their attention from Ivan to him taking in his features now. The man had a strong square jawline with a small amount of facial hair across his features. His hair was jet black, paired with icy blue eyes that showed hidden wisdom. He, like the other human, was quite scarred, with a trio of deep scars across his left eye.

Not wanting to be left out, Julian decided to remove his helmet as well. Dematerializing his helmet, he revealed his face with a large smile. He had a tanned face, and dark eyes that complimented his very short light-brown hair and neatly-trimmed facial hair. Unlike the other humans, he did not have any scars in his face. This was one of the many benefits of being a pilot.

Then, Star Fox turned their attention to Ajax, who felt pressured to remove his helmet as well. He did not really want to, but he also didn't want to be the only one who did not show his face. With reluctance, he dematerialized his helmet so they could see him as well.

He felt slightly uncomfortable as they observed his features, especially because he knew they were staring at his many scars. Especially the one that went from his forehead to his left cheek. He started to feel even more uncomfortable when he saw just how close the lynx stared at him, her smile gradually increasing in size.

Janine watched as the Star Fox team shifted to her. Realizing she had not revealed her own face, she looked at Ajax, who just gazed at her silently. She supposed that if he would show himself, then she should as well. With a sigh, she removed her helmet manually. She didn't have any scars on her face, but she did have a sparse amount of freckles across her face and had dark green eyes. As the Lylatians took in her features as they had done with the other humans, she ran her hand through her short red hair as a nervous tic.

Not wanting to stay and just be stared at, Ajax stood up and began making his way out of the living room.

"I will be gathering my things from our ship. To the rest of my team, I recommend you do the same."

Immediately, they all stood up, Ivan materializing his helmet back. Following Ajax out of the building and toward the ship, they spotted Skye approaching.

"The Confederate has been given adequate food and water, but he refuses to eat. If there isn't anything else you need, I'm going to introduce myself and ask some questions." the android said.

Ajax just nodded, making his way into the ship. He headed to his room in the ship, gathering all the items he felt he would use on a day-to-day basis, such as clothing and hygiene essentials. After putting said items into a container, he glanced at his room's desk and spotted what used to be his parents' wedding rings. He felt a small pang of sadness, and tenderly put it with the rest of his things.

With everything he would either want or need put together, he made his way back to what would be his new home. Entering the building, he took notice of the canine called "Fay", who showed quite a large amount of interest in Skye, asking her a multitude of questions. He figured someone obsessed with technology would find her interesting.

Spotting Fox, Ajax approached him with a very simple question in mind.

"So, where will I be staying for now?"

Fox thought for a moment before giving his answer.

"We don't exactly have many extra rooms, but I figure that we wouldn't mind sharing rooms if we have to."

"Well, how many extra rooms do you have?"

Fox rubbed the back of his head, sighing.

"Technically, two since Peppy doesn't really stay here often. Honestly, only one of the rooms is completely unoccupied."

While this was not as ideal as he had hoped, Ajax was still grateful for the roof over his head. He had definitely slept in much worse places than a room with someone else in it.

"Then I'm willing to share a room with one of your team."

Fox turned toward his team, shouting a question.

"Which of you is okay with having _him_ ," he started, pointing a thumb at Ajax, "stay in your room?"

Almost immediately, the lynx threw her hand up.

"Me! He can stay in my room." she shouted, not even the slightest bit embarrassed by her outburst. "It's the third door on the left upstairs."

"Well, there you have it." Fox said.

Ajax smiled.

"And so I do."

Following the lynx's directions, he went to put his things in her room. When he opened the door, he immediately took notice of the messy state of the room. What he assumed were dirty clothes lay on a desk, the bed in the back of the room, and in some parts of the floor. Parts to various weapons lay scattered on the desk in the back, as well as on a dresser. As well as a few other things left about, these disorganized items made Ajax feel mildly irked.

Shrugging, he set his things in the corner of the room. After having his things out of his arms, he turned to find himself facing the lynx named Miyu he would be sharing a room with.

"Sorry about the mess. Wasn't really expecting guests. But I couldn't pass up the opportunity to have such an interesting roommate."

With a smile, Ajax began to remove his armor, revealing his skin-tight undersuit.

"I hope you find me interesting in a good way."

Miyu tried not to make Ajax uncomfortable as she avoided staring at his body, the muscles adorning his figure only being emphasized by his undersuit.

"Yeah, of course. I'd really like to get to know you." she said, receiving a smile from Ajax.

Having removed all of his armor, Ajax grabbed some clothes from his bags and turned to Miyu.

"Where is the restroom? I would like to change into something a bit more comfortable."

"First door at the other end of the hall."

Ajax nodded, heading to the restroom, clothes in hand. He entered the room, seeing that it was almost exactly the same as the restrooms back home, having all the same things. Closing the door behind himself, he locked it and got changed into his "civilian clothing", being a plain black shirt and grey pants. It did not match the combat boots he wore, but he didn't really care that much.

He looked into the mirror, seeing the same tired face he had seen earlier that day. If he tried hard enough, he could almost remember the youthful and optimistic face of his past self from almost a decade ago, rather than the scarred and falsely charismatic face that hid years of built up bitterness.

With a sigh, he grabbed his black and red undersuit and exited the restroom, bumping into the white dog named "Fay". From what he could tell, she was the shy type, so he just gave a small nod of acknowledgement toward her. She opened her mouth to speak, but slowly just nodded back instead before the two carried on their way. Entering Miyu's room, he set his undersuit with the rest of his things and went down into the common area to be at least somewhat social.

When he got down to the common area, he saw Miyu was sitting next to Janine and asking her human-related questions, and Fay was just joining them.

"What do you guys eat?" Miyu asked.

"Well... since we're omnivorous we'll eat just about anything edible." Janine answered.

"What's your homeworld like?" Fay asked.

Janine leaned back on the couch, letting out a sigh.

"Well, I'm the only human here from a different world, so _my_ homeworld of Arkidonis was a relatively barren mining world, but had plenty of water and a few animals that ate lichen-like plants that grew everywhere. When I was just thirteen years of age, however, the Confederacy attacked my world and destroyed it completely. Out of the two billion people there, only about fifty thousand escaped in total."

The two Lylatians gasped, appalled that so many had been massacred. It reminded them of Krystal, who's planet was destroyed, leaving her as the only survivor.

"Of course, that was the main reason I joined the fight against the Confederacy. But I'm sure you still want to know about the world the humans originated from and where the rest of the team is from. They come from a planet called 'Earth', which has 71% of it covered in water. It has just about every environment, from jungles, to plains, to deserts, to frozen wastelands."

Miyu and Fay thought that "Earth" sounded quite a bit like Corneria, but more varied. It was certainly interesting.

"At one point in its history, however, it wasn't doing so well. Thousands of years ago, it had become mostly urbanized and over-populated, most environments being destroyed. Then, a massive war broke out, destroying most of the massive megacities all over the world. Fortunately, most of the world's population was already on its way out, as life was just about unsustainable. After the war, the United Republic of Terra was formed, and Earth was reformed through use of massive amounts of terraforming equipment."

To the two listening women, the history of that one planet sounded quite intense yet amazing, almost sounding like one of the science fiction books Fay used to read.

"Now, Earth is still quite populated, but the environment is heavily protected. If I had to say, it is doing better than ever as of now."

"Wow. That's... quite a bit of information." Fay said quietly.

Janine chuckled, shrugging.

"You asked."

Ajax laughed inwardly at the conversation, making his way through a hallway as he explored, spotting a room at the end that he went into. To his surprise, it looked to be some kind of armory/shooting range. In the room was Ivan, Krieg, and Falco all on one of the firing range lanes.

"So, what do you think of our blaster pistols?" Falco asked.

Krieg and Ivan both chuckled, making Falco frown.

"What's so funny?"

"Well, to put it lightly, your 'blasters' suck ass."

Ajax huffed, approaching his two teammates.

"That's rude, Krieg. Even if their weapons aren't as good, that doesn't mean-"

Krieg rolled his eyes as Ajax spoke, handing him the small pistol.

"Quit killing the fun and try it out yourself."

Looking down at Falco, who still held a small frown, Ajax nodded and grabbed the weapon, pointing it down the range. There were what looked like steel targets down the range, which seemed a bit low-tech compared to the hard-light targets all Union ranges used. Taking a moment to aim, he squeezed the trigger of the pistol.

Then, the blaster fired out a wimpy bolt into the bullseye of the target. Almost in disbelief, Ajax looked down at the weapon to see if there was something amiss, or if there was a power setting.

"Is this weapon fully charged?" Ajax asked.

Falco huffed, nodding his head.

"Yeah, it's fully charged. But I guess it's still not something you're impressed by." Falco said in a slightly disappointed tone.

"Well, I have to agree with Krieg. This pistol... sucks."

Falco just took the weapon back, setting the pistol with a set of other pistols on a weapon rack.

"Maybe for guys like you, but it does the job well for us. But even if you don't think _that's_ any good, I've got something that will show you what firepower means."

On a stand sat a heavy weapon that was easily dwarfed by Krieg's heavy laser cannon, and appeared to use ballistic ammunition, as the bullets were visible between slits in the weapon's drum. Falco hefted the weapon over to the humans, Krieg taking in in one hand.

"That is a Gatling gun. Hundred rounds loaded up, and is much more powerful than the standard issue machine gun. You'll never guess who it belongs to."

"If I had to guess... Miyu's gun?" Ajax asked.

"No, man. If we're 'never gonna guess', it's gotta be somebody unexpected. Is it the white canine? Fay, if I remember correctly?" Krieg asked.

Falco shook his head, smiling.

"Nope. It's _Krystal's_. Honestly, I'm a bit jealous."

The door to the range opened, drawing everyone's attention to the blue vixen that entered.

"Jealous of what?" Krystal asked, strolling in and setting her eyes on her weapon being wielded in Krieg's hand.

While Krieg figured out how to fire the weapon, Krystal crossed her arms and frowned at Falco.

"You know, you could have asked me first. They have my permission, but still."

Falco rubbed the back of his head, smiling sheepishly as Krieg took aim.

"Let's see if this is any good." Krieg said with a smile.

Immediately, he opened fire at the target down range, barely showing any difficulty as the target took a severe beating. After emptying the whole drum, he handed the weapon to Krystal, who listened eagerly with Falco to hear what he thought.

"Honestly, I'm not impressed. If you want to know what a _real_ gun is like, I'm sure Ajax would let you borrow his rifle. Just for reference, it's got the _least_ kick out of our weapons other than pistols."

With a smirk and a good bit of curiosity, Ajax materialized his rifle from his quantum storage unit and handed it to Falco, who gulped as he held the heavy weapon.

"Works like a standard rifle. Point it down range, pull the trigger. Don't flip up the switch on the side, though. That'll make it fire anti-tank explosives. And be careful if you press the button near the grip. That's an energy bayonet."

Falco observed the long weapon, almost overwhelmed by it and its many features. He took aim with the rifle, being taken by surprise by the sight. There were many markings and indications being read out on the sight, listing out the air composition of the environment and the rate of recharge on the rifle, as well as many other things. While he aimed down the weapon, the red reticle highlighted the target downrange.

"So, if this is a laser weapon, why does it have kick?" Falco asked, stalling.

"Because it forcefully ejects the laser. Keeps the damage consistent." Ajax answered.

Falco was pretty sure that wasn't how that was supposed to work. With a huff, he aimed back down the range and began to squeeze the trigger.

Then, the weapon rang out a low humming bark. Falco felt his body get forced backward before he stumbled to catch himself. As he recovered, he looked down the range at... what used to be the target. In its place was half of the target, the rest of the steel target being slag all over the wall behind it. As for the wall itself, there was a crater in it about half a foot across.

Falco looked down at the large rifle in his hands, then back up at the humans, who smiled like a couple of idiots at him.

"So? How's that for a weapon?" Krieg asked.

Handing back the weapon to Ajax, Falco looked to Krystal, who stared at the destroyed target down the range.

"I... was definitely not ready for that." Falco admitted.

Seemingly satisfied, Ajax dematerialized the weapon and began to head out.

"Tell you what. If I remember, I have an older model of the rifle I've been meaning to get rid of that I can give to you. Just remind me."

Ivan and Krieg stayed in the range, Krieg discussing weaponry while Ivan tested out the Star Fox team's arsenal for himself. Since he had no particular goal at the moment, he decided to just find out where everyone would be staying while he explored the building a bit more. As he walked around, he took note of where everything was, such as the kitchen near the living room where Janine was looking through the cupboards. He also took note of another room near the armory/shooting range that appeared to be a gym of some kind. Taking a quick peak inside, he saw Julian talking to Fox and Fay, no doubt trying to show off.

Not seeing any reason not to, Ajax headed inside the gym, hearing Julian talking about one of their missions.

"With only seconds left, I pulled our ship out of the hangar, flames licking at the bottom of the _Crimson Tide_."

Ajax rolled his eyes making his way over to the trio. Fox seemed impressed, as did Fay.

"I hope you included the part of that story where you blew a hole into the warship while we were in it."

Julian huffed.

"You know damn well those tanks were going to blow you to pieces if I didn't intervene."

Ajax just smiled and rolled his eyes again.

"Just saying. Anyway, have you gotten situated yet?"

Julian nodded, taking a seat on a piece of exercise equipment.

"Yup. I'll be staying in the spare room with Krieg. Ivan's staying with Falco, and Janine is staying with the blue fox."

"Krystal." Fox reminded Julian.

"Right."

With that bit of information, Ajax nodded and headed back out of the gym and looked for Skye. It didn't take long for him to spot her through a sliding door that led outside. He headed out this backdoor and took notice of the beauty of the surrounding area. There were many trees everywhere, but they weren't too crowded.

"Hey, Ajax. I've been taking in the sights of this world, and I gotta say: I really miss Earth."

Ajax chuckled lightly.

"Me too, Skye. Me too."

A moment of silence passed, the two thinking of their home. Then, the android spoke back up.

"This planet is very similar to Earth, I've gathered. Exact same air composition, similar plant-life. Hell, it's eerily similar in many ways."

Ajax found that to be interesting. He hadn't thought about how Earth-like the trees and planet really were.

"Definitely odd. But I think I'll worry about that kind of thing later. Do you know where you'll be staying?"

The android nodded, sweeping her black hair out of her eyes.

"In the brief time I spoke with the canine 'Fay', she offered to let me stay in her room when I recharge."

"Great. I'm glad everyone was able to get situated so fast. Which reminds me... did you ever run a scan to find out where we are?"

Skye nodded, projecting a holographic image from her hand.

"Take a look. Not a single familiar sector nearby. No recognizable stars, no friendly planets, nothing. We are _very_ far from home, Lieutenant."

Ajax felt his heart sink. He didn't show it, but an inkling of panic began to creep into him. If those scans were right, they were cut off from the Union until they could establish where they were exactly.

"Skye, I'm going to confront the Confederate to see what he knows about the warp gate that took us here. Warp gates don't just appear out of nowhere. But until then, don't tell the others anything. I don't want to worry them or aliens too much yet. I will tell everyone my discoveries, should I have any, in private later tonight."

Nodding, Skye just watched Ajax make his way toward the _Crimson Tide_.

* * *

Damien paced around his cell for what could have been the thousandth time. It had been a while since there was any activity. In fact, the Union soldiers had only checked on him once since he had woken up from the effects of sudden warp gate travel. And they had sent an android. Not one of the soldiers.

He would have felt insulted, but he didn't feel it was worth his thoughts.

Just as he started to wonder just what they were up to, he heard his cell door open. Looking up, he saw the face of who he assumed was one of his captors. One thing he noticed that was very odd was the man's casual attire. He was not dressed for combat like Damien was expecting. While in his inner musings about the Union trooper's choice of wear, he was rapidly approached by the man.

Confused, he decided to speak before anything else went down.

"Um, do you mind telling me what's going on?"

"A rogue warp gate opened, displacing us. Would you happen to know anything about something about that?"

As he registered what he had been told, Damien felt his blood run colder than ice.

"I... I do. Where we when the warp gate opened?"

"Does it have something to do with my question?"

Damien nodded rapidly.

"We were passing through Sector Loki B 4-1. What is significant about that information?"

Damien could barely think. The panic in his mind was more than he could handle.

"I won't ask again. What is significant about that information."

Looking up, Damien answered with a shaky voice.

"T-they built a bomb. The defector. One that wouldn't be detected by traditional means. One made out of a warp device."

Ajax felt anger course through his body.

"Bastards. I knew they would pull some underhanded project like this."

"But that isn't all."

Ajax slowly looked back at the Confederate.

"What? What do you mean?"

With fear twisting his expression, Damien revealed what he had heard from the defector.

"It wasn't just any warp drive. That at least has a chance of recovery. This was an _interdimensional warp drive_."

Disbelief was the only thing that could be felt by Ajax.

"That's bullshit. They don't... have..."

Ajax remembered just what the traitor scientist had been working on. What he had been exiled for. Taking one more look at the Confederate, Ajax walked out of the cell and locked it, much to the vocally stated displeasure of the Confederate.

Ajax was going to have to break it to his team just what kind of situation they were in. It explained so much. It explained why they couldn't find anything familiar, why the aliens spoke English, and more. More than anything, Ajax felt anger and fear. But he couldn't afford to show that. Not now. Of course, he was still left with one problem:

What now?

* * *

 _Howdy everybody. Not a very long or exciting chapter, but I wanted to use this chapter as a way to lay down the general setting of where the humans would be staying and further establish the Reaper Squad members' personalities. It also kind of acts as an info-dump, and I apologize for that. I know it sucks to read though a bunch of information, but I will try not to do that again. I just wasn't quite sure of how else I wanted to do it. To make up for it, I'll try to get another more action-oriented chapter written soon._

 _All that aside, I hope it was at least interesting. I want to make all of the information about Reaper Squad and Star Fox intriguing in some way so it isn't as much of a snore to trudge through. As always, be sure to tell me what you think. Feedback is important so I know what to do/what not to do._

 _If you have any questions or concerns, shoot me a message and I'll get right to answering you when I can._

 _See y'all around!_

 _-Lord Jerry_


End file.
